About a year ago, I embarked on a journey which led to very serious relationship; I’m talking about my relationship (ahem, love affair) with cold brew coffee, and the journey of which I speak is creating cold brew at home. I realize that I sound a bit dramatic, but let’s be honest-coffee is of the utmost importance. Cold brew coffee is practically everywhere you look now, it is super trendy and sounds like something that would require you to possess a serious set of barista skills, an intricate coffee know-how, and maybe even a man-bun, suspenders and horn rimmed glasses (just sayin’) BUT, this is most certainly not the case. I am here to tell you first hand: cold brew coffee is literally the easiest method of coffee making I’ve ever come across (literally). My boyfriend and I cannot live without our cold brew now, and to be honest I can’t really remember life before it. Not only is it the perfect way to stay caffeinated and cooled off in the warmer months, but the method of cold brewing results in less acidic and smoother tasting coffee (a win win, if you ask me). The coffee is delicious on it’s own, but sometimes I like to dress it up with some homemade hazelnut milk and lavender honey. Below you will find recipes for the perfect cold brew coffee, hazelnut milk, and lavender honey.

Making the Cold Brew:

*UPDATED

So, the method I had previously described below definitely works, BUT…I have discovered a slightly different method that I think works better. So, if you don’t have a nut milk bag, ignore this method (or buy one and try it out! They’re pretty cheap on Amazon).

Updated Nut Milk Bag/Refrigerator Method:

What you will need:

1 Liter mason jar with lid

4 cups of filtered water

3/4 cup coarsely ground medium roast coffee

a reusable nut milk bag

Directions:

After trying so many different variations, I’ve decided this method yields the best tasting coffee (for me). Add 3/4 cup coarsely ground medium roast coffee to the nut milk bag and tightly close (mine has a drawstring, so I pull it tight and then wrap the string around and tie to ensure no coffee gets out). Next place this nut milk bag of coffee grounds into your 1 liter jar and add 4 cups of water (if you don’t want to measure, you can simply fill the entire jar with water- if you’re using the 1 liter jar of course). Close your jar with the lid and give it a good shake. Here’s another key difference: you’re going to put the jar in the refrigerator instead of leaving it at room temp. The ideal brewing time is kind of random: 11 hours seems to do the trick. I learned of this method from Business Insider while perusing the inter web. After 11 hours, remove the bag from the jar and squeeze out coffee from the bag, discard grounds and wash your bag. What you have left in the jar is your cold brew. Give it a try and add some hazelnut milk (recipe below)- enjoy!

What you will need:

a french press (32 oz.)

1 Liter mason jar with lid

4 cups of filtered water

3/4 cup coarsely ground medium roast coffee

*This is the type of jar I use, you can find them almost anywhere (target, tj maxx, homegoods etc.) they’re super cheap and often come in a pack of three; you can obviously use any liter canning jar you’d like, though!)

Notes on the type of coffee:

It is important to use a medium roast coffee, and make sure that you coarsely grind the beans. I have done a lot of experimenting with different variations of coarseness and expensive vs. cheap brands of coffee. From my personal experience, I have found that Trader Joe’s organic fair trade breakfast blend works very well- I have zero affiliation with them, just wanted to give you all a tip (only 7.99!)

Method:

Measure out 3/4 cup of coffee and add to your jar. Next. add 4 cups of cold filtered water. If you have the liter jar and don’t feel like measuring, you can simply just fill the rest of the jar with water (it equals 4 cups). Close the jar with the lid and shake it up lightly to get everything distributed. Then, set the jar aside in a room temperature location for at least 12 hours. I like to make a few jars in the evening and let them brew overnight. That’s the thing, you basically do nothing: just mix the water and coffee and it brews itself.

After at least 12 hours of brewing, open up the jar and pour entire contents into your french press. Press the coffee as you would normally do with a french press, wash out the jar you used for brewing and pour the cold brew coffee into it. Store in the refrigerator: a jar has never lasted more than a day in my household, but it will keep for up to two weeks in the fridge!

Hazelnut Milk:

What you will need:

a high speed blender

a nut milk bag or cheesecloth

1 cup of raw hazelnuts

4 cups of filtered water

3 medjool dates (pits removed)

1 pinch of sea salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp cinnamon

Method:

Pour your hazelnuts into a bowl/jar/whatever receptacle you’d like, cover the nuts with water and let them soak for 12 hours or overnight. Pour out the water the hazelnuts soaked in and rinse the nuts off. Add the hazelnuts to your blender and fill with 4 cups of filtered water ( you can use 3 or 3 1/2 cups water if you want the milk to be super creamy and more similar to coffee creamer than to milk). Blend for about a minute and pour into your nut milk bag or through your cheesecloth over a large bowl. Squeeze out every last drop of hazelnut milk from the bag and then store in a jar for up to 4 days in the fridge.

Lavender Honey Syrup:

1 tbsp culinary dried lavender

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup water

In a medium sized pot or sauce pan, bring lavender, honey, and water to a boil, turn down and let it simmer for a few minutes or until honey is dissolved. Pour over a fine mesh strainer into a jar and discard lavender. Let cool and store in the refrigerator.

Bringing it all together: Lavender Hazelnut Cold Brew Latte

Pour some hazelnut milk into your glass ( the amount is a matter of preference, if fill about a quarter of the glass with milk). Next, pour the rest of the glass with your cold brew coffee and pour in some lavender honey syrup (anywhere from a tsp to a tbsp, again, a matter of how sweet you like your coffee). I like to then add some ice cubes and mix it around vigorously to get the coffee super cold, but I always discard the ice cubes after because I don’t want my coffee to get diluted. Another good option is making coffee ice cubes with your cold brew (goodbye watery iced coffee!) I sometimes add a shot of espresso to the mix if I’m feeling a little crazy, which let’s be honest, is most of the time. Enjoy!